Japanese Kimono

Archive for the ‘Kimono History’ Category

With the rise of warriors and wealthy landowners to positions of authority, traditional forms and conventions changed; what was soon valued was anything new and novel. Women of all classes continued to wear the kosode in public, but the wives of powerful daimyo found richer and more elaborate kimono more in keeping with their status.

On ceremonial occasions these women would carry a small purse called a hakoseko tucked between the front kimono panels just above the breasts. The ceremonial kosode and uchikake (ceremonial winter robe, shown below) from this period is today the most formal bridal kimono attire.

Warriors often had to travel long distances and so preferred dress and armor which were simpler and lighter. They wore trouserlike hakama and upper garments with drawstrings at the sleeve ends. The dress of lower ranking samurai was a kimono with tubular sleeves and short pants. They usually wore armor on the upper body alone.

The kosode was adopted as the standard dress for women regardless of class, but for formal wear, there was the long outer robe known as uchikake kimono. In summer this kimono robe was slipped off the shoulders, tied at the waist, and allowed to drape on the floor. Worn with long trailing hakama, this is referred to as the koshi-maki style kimono.

Dobuku kimono

Common people began wearing the dobuku, a short coat similar to the haori. The dobuku kimono originated as the garb of street vendors, but toward the end of the Muromachi period, it came to be worn at home by upper class men.